1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to the field of mounting systems used to secure, organize and protect electronic equipment in commercial and industrial settings. More particularly, the present invention relates to methods, systems, and devices for mounting non-uniform components in an organized and easily modifiable structure.
2. Description of Related Art
An equipment rack or other style industrial/commercial electronics enclosure system is typically designed to industry standards to hold electronics equipment specifically designed to those same standards. Commercial electrical components are typically equipped with mounting means on the face of the component for securing the device to a rack. The mounting means most often provides holes that can be lined up with holes on the rack and secured thereto using screws.
With the mushrooming growth of office/home electronics and their improved reliability, commercial electronics systems designers now consider the use of these a suitable and often more functionally flexible or cost effective alternative to industrial/commercial electronic equipment. A major drawback with office/home electronics, however, is that they are invariably offered only in a desktop style case and do not have the required hardware for mounting the component in a commercial rack. Further, there is no provision in the industry standard equipment rack to mount desktop style devices which lack the requisite hardware.
Another issue with using desktop style components in a commercial type rack is that the desktop style components vary considerably in size and geometry. Since the desktop styles are not equipped with mounting means for securing the component to a rack, the components need not be of the same width to fit in the rack. Thus, a basic tenet of desktop component design is to make the component as small as reasonably possible rather than standardizing the shape and size of the component to fit in a standard industry style rack. The industry standard rack and like-designed equipment forces a uniformity of appearance that gives a professional appearance, whereas desktop components of varying size and geometry and mounted in non-standard methods typically do not.
Most desktop cases are made of plastic and are designed to operate in a narrow temperature range consistent with an office/home environment. When equipment is densely mounted in an industrial/commercial equipment rack, the electronics equipment must be engineered to dissipate heat in a manner consistent with the cooling mechanism employed in the rack. Desktop style equipment must be mounted in the cooling air flow with sufficient spacing between devices to prevent cross heating or obstruction of the air flow. Additionally, the mounting means is best when it does not act as an insulating cover over the desktop device.
Industrial/commercial systems designers must find a way to accommodate a wide variety of small electronic devices that were designed for desktop use and lacking industrial mounting facilities. Typical small electronic devices are network interfaces, keyboard/video/mouse extenders, media players, modems, wireless interfaces, etc.
Electronic devices are typically mounted in the following ways: 1) constrained with custom brackets designed for a particular model device, 2) bound with plastic ties to any available protrusion, or 3) adhered to an available surface with adhesive-backed hook and loop tape (Velcro). The first method is expensive to design and has limited usefulness over the lifetime of the enclosure system due to the rapid changes in electronics functionality and geometry. The second method is low cost but does not allow for an engineered mounting, as the electronic component may be mounted without proper concern given for cooling airflow and serviceability. Even if these concerns are addressed, once the plastic ties are cut during servicing there is little chance the component will be remounted in the previous manner. The third method is prone to adhesive failure and is not reusable when the electronic device is replaced.
It is clear from existing technology that a mounting system for small electronic devices and desktop style devices is needed for designers of the industrial/commercial electronic equipment racks to be capable of incorporating desktop-style electronic components in an industrial or commercial environment.